Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Dr. Laela Sayigh has been compiling a database of whistles from a pod of dolphins in Sarasota, Florida, the longest-studied group of cetaceans in the world. And since dolphins don’t have to open their mouths to make sounds, figuring out which dolphins are “talking” is harder than you think!
She sat down with Science Friday to chat about how dolphins use their signature whistles and what else they might be communicating.
Listen to the podcast now on our YouTube channel.
Photos provided by Brookfield Zoo Chicago's Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, taken under NMFS MMPA Scientific Research Permit
Dolphin whistles provided by Laela Sayigh of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and Brookfield Zoo Chicago's Sarasota Research Program (SDRP). The sounds were obtained under a federal scientific research permit issued to R. Wells of SDRP.
Dr. Laela Sayigh has been compiling a database of whistles from a pod of dolphins in Sarasota, Florida, the longest-studied group of cetaceans in the world. And since dolphins don’t have to open their mouths to make sounds, figuring out which dolphins are “talking” is harder than you think!
She sat down with Science Friday to chat about how dolphins use their signature whistles and what else they might be communicating.
Listen to the podcast now on our YouTube channel.
Photos provided by Brookfield Zoo Chicago's Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, taken under NMFS MMPA Scientific Research Permit
Dolphin whistles provided by Laela Sayigh of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and Brookfield Zoo Chicago's Sarasota Research Program (SDRP). The sounds were obtained under a federal scientific research permit issued to R. Wells of SDRP.
